Chapter Six:
The sun was beginning to set on another brisk March day, and Mary sat with Bobby and Rogue on one of the mansion's back porches talking pleasantly. She had felt uneasy until she spent some time in the dining hall with the younger students. The mood had been playful, without any mention of the previous day's events, and by the end of the meal, Mary had laughed so many times at the antics of the others she had settled into a welcome peace of mind.
Rogue yawned widely and leaned her head against Bobby's shoulder. He slung one arm around her and touched her hair gently. Rogue smiled and sighed. Home was good, and after what happened yesterday, home was better than she ever remembered it.
The remainder of the sunlight was shining down through the trees that circled the mansion's grounds, casting odd shadows on the grass. Mary was staring intently at the beams of light, how their lingering warmth cut through the growing shadows.
"So here you all are," Storm's voice said from behind them, and Mary smiled as she sat down beside her, "I was wondering where you had escaped to..."
Rogue chuckled, but she kept her eyes closed, "Escaping from what?"
"Clean up duty," Bobby replied quickly and grinned.
"Not tonight," Storm said, brushing one long, white strand of hair behind her ear, "The students are taking care of it...under protest..."
Mary smiled at her, but the expression faded quickly as she looked out over the yard. Storm regarded her closely for a moment before speaking.
"How are you, Mary?" she asked in a soft voice, and the younger woman blinked in surprise.
"Fine," she replied, "I'm fine...really."
Storm tilted her head slightly, "I guess Hank would be following you around if you weren't."
Mary nodded and smiled.
"I'm sorry you were drawn into our little adventure," Storm said somberly, "But, the Professor seems to believe that your intervention may have save lives."
Mary glanced at her and then down at her hands, "Intervention? I wish I knew exactly what I did."
Storm put a reassuring hand on Mary's arm, "Whatever it was...it came to you when it was needed. Not all of our gifts are easily understood, especially when we are first learning about them. Sometimes, their uses, their benefits, only become known in the most extreme of circumstances."
When she finished speaking, all three of the others were staring at her curiously. She had sounded very much like the Professor for a moment, a teacher passing down what she herself had learned.
Mary stared down at her hands again, thinking about her past and future, light and darkness...what she saw and what she had not yet seen.
Storm glanced up and smiled as Kurt stepped out onto the porch. He was wearing a long dark coat with a hood, and greeted each of them quickly.
"I think I will go to mass tonight," he said softly, and then smiled at Storm, "I have much to speak about with Him...and much to be thankful for..."
"If I'm asleep when you get back," Rogue said with another yawn, "Have a good night, Kurt."
With one swift motion, Kurt pulled the hood up over his head and headed toward the porch steps. Mary looked over at him and called out.
"I think I'll go with you," she said, standing and following him quickly, "I have a few questions of my own tonight, too. Do you think the Professor will mind if I go, Storm?"
The other woman shook her head and smiled, "Of course not. We'll speak after you return."
Mary walked quickly down the stairs. Kurt gave Storm a quick nod before heading on.
I'll keep an eye on her, his glance said, and Storm sighed. She was actually glad neither of them were heading off alone anywhere tonight. She still felt very uneasy about any of her friends facing a crowd of the general (normal) public alone.
It took Kurt a few quick steps before he caught up with Mary, who was marching across the grass at an unusually fast pace. Kurt matched her stride easily, and glanced at her with concern. Mary spoke before he could.
"Thanks for letting me come along," she said, "And please don't ask me how I'm doing...I'm fine."
Kurt shrugged, "Of course you are. You're walking and breathing. If you weren't doing either of those, I would worry..."
Mary grinned and rolled her eyes, "I'm sorry...I'm just...shaken up still, I guess. All these questions about my visions and everything else. It's just been weighting on me. Dinner made me feel a little better but now that worry is back, burning in my chest and in my head..."
"Well, that could be indigestion..." Kurt said with a smile, and as Mary chuckled he patted her shoulder, "At least you're going to a place now where you can ask for guidance to those answers."
Mary crossed her arms tightly over her chest, "I hope so..."
"Sometimes I miss living in my little church," Kurt said, "Just because I felt so much peace there, among visages of saints and angels. But living in the school is much more fulfilling. At least there, we are not alone with our questions."
Alone, Mary thought, I've always been alone. I've always been apart from everyone else...even before I saw the...
"What do you think they are, Kurt?" she said.
"What?" Kurt asked, frowning with confusion.
"Angels," she replied simply, and Kurt smiled broadly.
"Messengers and servants of God," he said without a second thought, touching one of the tattoos on his face with his large fingers, "Some of the many guides we find in our lives. I believe angels find us when we need them..."
Or when they need us... Mary thought darkly, When we are needed for something...even if we don't want it...
"Why do you ask?" he said.
Mary shrugged, "I don't know. Just a question. I've read a lot of books about religion and tradition, but...no one ever really said what exactly they are."
Kurt looked at her with surprise, "Well, some religious texts do describe where angels exist in God's plan, different choirs of angels, and archangels, like Michael and Gabr..."
"Yes, I know," Mary interrupted him quickly, "But, angels can be fallen, too, can't they? How do you know the difference when you see one? The difference between demons and angels?"
Kurt was not sure how to reply. He had thought on the subject of demons quite often in his religious studies. When hiding in his small church in Massachusetts, he had convinced many intruders that he was a demon. But, he had never thought about actually encountering such an evil.
"I don't know," he replied, "I suppose if we are ever faced with such a being, the choice will be ours on what we believe that being may be."
Mary sighed and nodded, "Hopefully...none of us will be faced with being like that again..."
"Again?" Kurt asked.
"I mean like the creature in the hanger," she said quickly, not ready to explain her childhood encounters again until after they got back to the mansion.
As they approached the church, the bells signaling the beginning of mass rang beautifully. Kurt pulled his hood down further over his face as he moved through the front door.
Mary paused and stood next to large statues of several saints and the brightly painted archway depicting an idyllic heaven. She looked over at Kurt, who was now sitting in the very last pew as other members of the congregation moved past him toward the front of the church, sparing him only suspicious glances.
Why worry about demons and other evil things when there's already so much hate here on Earth, Mary thought sadly and walked through the archway so she could sit next to her friend.